Im having an issue with the sail track closing due to the lopsided pressure from the GNAV , especially when its blowing a bit. It makes the sail either very difficult to get down or impossible.The only way is to force the bracket back to its original position, which is weakening it , eventually the mast will fail.

I've tgot he original mast on boat No. 690. Is there an upgrade or newer designed bracket that prevents this on newer boats, or any one have any alternative ideas?

If i design and make a bracket that is connected to the lowers bracket to limit this, will this bend the class rules? ( pun intended!)

I have checked my boat (610) and there is no sign of the mast tack closing.....not sure why yours has bent. I'm not aware of any changes in design - may be someone with a newer boat can comment....you could try calling RS.

I would hope the association would be lenient interpreting the rules if you have to fit a re-designed bracket!

Sadly, this is a common problem with the 500, particularly for those who use massive amounts of gnav tension and/or go out in big blows. Tim Wilkins has had two mast failures at this point and I have had one, and I know of a couple of others. I think RS might have been looking at this, but it would require a fundamental re-design of the mast and sail and I haven't heard whether they are going to do anything.

The use of high gnav tension is normally to get adequate mast bend in strong winds. I have altered my spreaders so I get more mast bend with less gnav. It makes the boat more controllable and means I don't now have different shroud settings for different conditions. It might not work if I had a heavy crew, though.

You could think of it as a feature that will get you a new mast on insurance every few years.

Im thinking that if i stiffen the mast with the spreaders and move them forward it should give me more leach tension..when set up as per the manual its ok in the lighter stuff, but a bit all over the place when it picks up. But have no idea how fast its going...must come to a meeting soon.